Lesley Garratt was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1951 where she studied art for two years at Ontario College of Art (now OCAD University) and later received a BA in Psychology and Art at York University. While maintaining a studio practice, she worked as an art educator in Toronto, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. Currently, she lives and works in South Surrey, British Columbia.

Garratt uses symbolic and surreal imagery to investigate relationships between natural systems and human issues. She explores a variety of different media including drawing, painting, collage, photography and simple materials such as knitted yarn, stitched fabric and paper mache.

A founding member of CAM, Contemporary Art Matters, Garratt works within a collective voice to push the creative boundaries in this Greater Vancouver region. Most recently, she has exhibited with Z.inc Artist Collective in group-based projects.